In recent decades the gorilla populations have been affected by habitat loss, disease, poaching and abuse by local car dealerships. Gorillas are our closest living relatives after chimpanzees and bonobo. Gorillas are considered endangered and there have been extreme measures taken to protect these mammals from extinction.
Car dealers across the country have been using gorillas to promote their dealership and inventory. Over the past few years, auto dealers have faced a flurry of accusations about overworked and underpaid gorillas in their marketing departments. According to a gorilla protection group, car dealers have used gorillas to stand in front of their dealerships to attract attention to their inventory. In some cases, gorillas have been made to stand on the roof of the dealership for weeks at a time.
Automotive Internet Media has a solution to protect these gorillas so they can be released back into their habitat where they are meant to be. CarClicks inventory marketing program is giving these gorillas’ their freedom, click this link to learn more.
In place of gorillas trying to persuade drive by traffic to the dealership, CarClicks finds online shoppers and drives them to the dealership website.
“CarClicks is the most efficient advertising program in the auto industry. CarClicks finds in-market auto shoppers and links them directly to the vehicle display pages of our dealership website. Since we started using CarClicks we’ve dramatically increased our website traffic and have been selling more cars. We also ensure there are no gorillas working in our marketing department. We feel much better about the gorillas and are saving a ton of money on gorilla food,” said a general manager that commented on anonymity.
While you are feeling good about saving gorillas all around the nation, you will also be promoting your inventory online to in-market auto shoppers – linking them directly to the vehicle display pages that will help you sell more cars, trucks and SUVs. CarClicks has proven to outperform all gorillas and other linking programs and will complement the best optimized PPC campaigns in the auto industry.
For those dealers looking to make a positive impact on gorilla conservation and to improve their cars sales, contact us today!
2016 Chicago Auto Show: Day Two
February was an exciting time for us here at Automotive Internet Media because of the 2016 Chicago Auto Show, which ran from February 13th – 21st.
While visiting the show, we enjoyed checking out all the latest vehicles. In addition, we were fortunate enough to talk to many car lovers, young and old, to gain their opinions!
See all the fun we had on day two!
Want to learn how we can link prospective car buyers like those from the Chicago Auto Show to your dealer website? Check out CarClicks today and schedule your CarClicks challenge!
Diving into Google’s New Ad Layout on Desktop Search Results
You may (or may not) have noticed Google’s new update to desktop search results. When searching on Google recently – since February 19th to be exact – the Google ads on the right side have disappeared from desktop view.
Instead of three ads being shown at the top of the Google search with a few on the right side as well, there are now four ads being displayed at the top. Three more text ads will also show at the bottom of the search results pages (SERPs), removing about 30% of previously available ad space.
So, does these mean that CPCs will be increasing dramatically? Maybe, but we’ll need more time to evaluate. Of course, the top four ads will sell for a lot more than the bottom three, but that is to be expected. With less real estate available, demand will likely increase while supply has decreased, leading to an increase in selling/bidding price. However, one could also argue the fact that there are more “top” spots now than there were before, which could potentially lower the cost per clicks.
As a search marketing provider, we will continue to monitor this change’s effect on the CPC and average position of our clients’ ads, but as of now, little impact has been shown – although it’s early.
There is also another factor to consider: Organic traffic. Since there are now four top ads instead of three, the top organic search result will be pushed lower down the page (if there are four or more companies bidding on ads for that term).
What does this mean for you? Well, say you are winning a popular search term organically but not with paid (PPC) for your website. There are now four paid spots that may grab someone’s attention before they can even make it down the page to your organic listing.
Therefore, in a highly competitive market like auto sales, it may be time to consider purchasing your name if you are not already winning it, or to adjust your campaign structure to be a little more aggressive where needed. Organic rankings may become less important as time goes on, so we’ll have to keep an eye out!
For more information on pay per click search marketing and how it works, give AIM a call today!
AIM Visits the 2016 Chicago Auto Show
The 2016 Chicago Auto Show took place on February 13th through the 21st in Chicago, of course.
McCormick Place was jam packed full of new releases from companies all over the globe, ranging in price, performance, and function.
Since we are locals and are car-lovers, we had to stop by the Auto Show. Check out the video below and see some of the highlights from Day One!
For information on how we can help your dealership succeed, give us a call today!
Breaking Down the Difference: CarClicks vs. Traditional Pay Per Click Marketing
You may be wondering if you have a CarClicks account, do you really need a pay per click presence, or vice versa? Or, do you even need either of these advertising mediums?
We recommend having both, and not because CarClicks is our product! The benefits will outweigh the costs, and you will sell more cars. It’s that simple. We’ll break down the two strategies so it’s easier to understand the differences, as it can get kind of confusing when you start hearing acronyms like PPC, CPC, SRP, and VDP. We’re confident you’ll see why each of these services will be worth it in the end.
How CarClicks Works
CarClicks is another version of a pay per click campaign where your ads are not listed on Google, but instead on various auto shopping websites for in-market customers. For example, you may have a used 2014 Ford Focus on your lot that you are looking to sell. Because CarClicks updates their database every day, they saw you have that Focus in your inventory, so they will automatically list the car on dozens of automotive websites where customers can shop for 2014 Ford Focus’ in their area.
There are several benefits to this mode of advertising. First, you are not charged anything until a customer clicks on your car, so you know that whoever clicks is interested in that specific car on your lot. Second, when a customer clicks on your car, they will then be redirected to your website – specifically the vehicle display page, rather than staying on that third party site. The customer can then check out the car itself and browse any other cars on your site, fill out a contact form, etc.
Unlike Google’s pay per click campaigns, CarClicks ads are actual vehicle detail page listings, not just keywords that would link to either your website home page or search results page. The customer is taken directly to that exact vehicle, avoiding confusion and increasing the likelihood of them scheduling a test drive.
How Pay Per Click Marketing Works
Unlike CarClicks being linked directly to your VDPs, pay per click (PPC) ads are typically linked to corresponding search results pages or homepage of your website, depending on the ad. These ads are also not displayed on popular vehicle shopping sites, but are displayed right on the Google search page when you search a specific term, such as “2016 Chrysler 200” or “New 2016 Truck”.
The PPC process uses a bidding system to determine which ad will show up for which keyword on Google, ranking in position – with 1 being the very first spot and also the most expensive per click. Recently, Google has gone away with side bar ads and is only filling ad spots for 1 through 7, so demand for ad space is at all all-time high.
Although Google PPC ads are similar in the sense that they are billed at a cost per click (CPC), they aren’t very similar in many other ways. These ads will show up based on the relevance, location, time of the day that a user searches for the keyword, budget, etc. An ad is not likely to show up in every search unless there are unlimited finds, of course. The more competitive a keyword, the more money it will cost an advertiser. There is no fixed CPC here, and it’s a balancing act with trying to juggle funds and maintaining a good position in a Google search so that users will see the ad and click on it.
So, What’s the Verdict?
Pay per click search marketing can be time consuming, tricky, and tedious, so companies often outsource this service to experts like AIM. If your ads are not placed properly, relevant, or targeted in the correct way, you could be wasting thousands of dollars!
Customers are shopping online now more than ever before, so being absent from search marketing is a big no-no. We’re willing to bet that your competitors are paying for pay per click ads that are relevant to you, so don’t let them take your customers from you! Give us a call us today and let’s get started on your PPC strategy.
Additionally, if you are looking to drive customers straight to your vehicle display pages (and who isn’t?), schedule your 15-minute demo now! More views on your VDPs means more cars sold. Don’t lose out on a deal you could easily win.
Why It Is Important to Drive Traffic to Your Own Website
There are many tools on the Internet to provide visibility for your dealership, but the key outlet is your website. Therefore, driving traffic to it is very important. No visitors mean no sales from that channel. And with so many people using the Internet every day you could be missing out on countless potential buyers.
Visitors directed to your own site, rather than another website you are listed on, are more valuable. These people have the opportunity to look through multiple pages, submit their information, or click-to-chat with a salesperson. Once you get their information, you can market to them long term either through retargeting ads or directly via email or phone call, raising the probability of closing a sale.
One great way to direct a large quantity of targeted traffic is through the CarClicks program. CarClicks drives traffic from various portal sites directly to your inventory. Generally, 75% or more sessions through the system are new shoppers, or customers who have never been to your site before. This gives you the opportunity to market to many new potential customers using the tools on your own site.
So, if you’ve spent a lot of time and money on your website and are thinking “what’s next?” – driving valuable traffic is the answer. One great way to do that for dealers is with CarClicks. To learn more about the CarClicks program and Automotive Internet Media, contact us today.
Double Your Traffic with CarClicks!
In most cases, CarClicks will produce twice the traffic looking for your inventory over other marketing programs. We are the most efficient marketing program in the automotive industry. Best cost and best quality.
The CarClicks Twins
Are you looking for a way to get more auto shoppers to your website? Are you looking for a way to get more exposure to your inventory? Are you looking for a way to sell more cars, trucks and SUVs? CarClicks inventory marketing program is the solution you need to sell more vehicles and increase your inventory turn.
CarClicks finds auto shoppers in your market who are searching specifically for the inventory you have on your lot, then drives them to the vehicle display pages (VDPs) of your dealership website.
Give CarClicks a Try
Chicago Auto Show's First Look for Charity 2016
Friday night was the First Look for Charity at the Chicago Auto Show. There are 18 different charities raising money for local causes. We accepted an invitation to attend the Catholic Charities Diocese of Joliet. We had great food and drinks and bid on many raffle items.
Two lucky winners drove home new cars. Lincoln gave away a 2016 MKX and Jeep gave away a 2016 Jeep Renegade.
Automotive Internet Media is proud to be the digital agency for the Chicago Auto Show 2016.